Buy it... if you're an enthusiast of the music for the Alien
franchise and can forgive Marc Streitenfeld for creating something of a
tribute to his predecessors while cranking up the organically
melodramatic aspect of the concept.

Avoid it... if you expect the four new themes in this score to
develop into a clear narrative, a task made difficult by the intrusion
of significant and challenging sound design into the mix for the
suspense and horror sequences.

EDITORIAL REVIEW

FILMTRACKS TRAFFIC RANK: #841

WRITTEN
6/10/12

BUY IT

Streitenfeld

Gregson-Williams

Prometheus: (Marc Streitenfeld/Harry
Gregson-Williams) At war in director Ridley Scott's 2012 visual stunner
Prometheus are audience expectations for neatly-wrapped
explanations of a classic old story and the filmmakers' desire to
tantalize those audiences by raising more questions than they answer.
The franchise that followed the 1979 Scott movie Alien never
explained many of the original story's mysteries, and in the early
2000's, Scott and Aliens director James Cameron sought to explore
a prequel that would expand upon the fascinating scenes in Alien
that continued to baffle with their origins. While the intrusion of the
Predator franchise into the scene ultimately drove Cameron away,
Scott revisited the Alien concept in his much revised story for
Prometheus, setting the stage for the events later seen in
Alien without actually establishing a narrative that directly
flows into the 1979 film (defying the format of The Thing prequel
in 2011). The famous scene of the giant, dead "space jockey" creature in
Alien inspires much of Prometheus, though Scott explores
existential and mythological territory (akin to Blade Runner)
surrounding that race's activities in the universe. These "engineers"
seem not only to be responsible for the creation of the human race, but
also the genetic experimentation that leads to the establishment of the
feared "alien" race of unknown purpose. Whether the classic aliens are
meant as a biological weapon specifically bred to wipe out humanity is
as much a mystery as the engineers' role in creating humans in the first
place. A strong feminine hero, a somewhat creepy android, and a whole
lot of gruesome killings are showcased in typical Scott fashion,
utilizing visuals that were almost universally praised by critics.
Response to Prometheus was mixed due to the filmmakers' decision
to leave the door open for a direct sequel rather than explicitly
explain the involvement of the specific engineer in the context of
Alien. Musically speaking, the Alien franchise has never
enjoyed any remote level of musical consistency through its decades of
rotating between directors and composers. While the soundtrack for each
individual entry has its own merits, the general approach to all of
these entries has varied wildly since Jerry Goldsmith's first score in
1979. Perhaps one of the most interesting developments in
Prometheus is the choice to pay homage to several of the previous
franchise scores' themes and techniques rather than blaze an entirely
new trail.

Composer Marc Streitenfeld has been Scott's regular
composing collaborator since the mid-2000's, replacing Hans Zimmer, who
had mentored the younger German associate for several years prior. The
quality of Streitenfeld's output for Scott has varied considerably, his
work for American Gangster clearly superior to Body of
Lies and Robin Hood thereafter. The intelligence of his
motific development for The Grey earlier in 2012, regardless of
the poor listenability of the score, bode well for similar
thoughtfulness in Prometheus. Strangely, also contributing to the
continuation of the Alien concept is composer Harry
Gregson-Williams, another connection to Zimmer and Scott (the ill-fated
Kingdom of Heaven). While Streitenfeld is responsible for most of
the music in Prometheus, the more established Gregson-Williams
contributed a theme for the mythological angle of the story that weaves
throughout several vital scenes, including the opening credits ("Life").
Fortunately, the material by Gregson-Williams is executed in a sound
similar enough to Streitenfeld's music to avoid any glaring stylistic
continuity issues, and mainstream listeners won't likely notice any
difference in the music by the two men here. The approach Streitenfeld
took to Prometheus will please film music collectors familiar
with the franchise and worried about the dilution of the concept with
the kind of brainless, Remote Control-derived music that embarrassed
Battleship earlier the same year. Very conscious of the
franchise's history was Streitenfeld, who seemingly took inspiration
from Jerry Goldsmith, Elliot Goldenthal, and John Frizzell for the
various facets of his score. The eeriness of Goldsmith's original
returns, fluttering woodwind figures and disparate high and low tones in
strained atmospheric haze eventually culminating in a credited full
statement of the 1979 theme. The nod to Goldenthal is in the texture of
the orchestral element, meandering brass pitches (and other brass usage)
and percussive techniques reminiscent of the epic brutality of Alien
3. Meanwhile, often overlapped is Frizzell's infusion of electronic
sound effects for Alien Resurrection, much of the sound design
portion of Prometheus similarly conveyed. One of the unfortunate
absences in the 2012 score, while understandable to an extent, is the
ball-busting militaristic tone of James Horner's Aliens for the
new action sequences. Still, while ripping action motifs are not a part
of Prometheus, Streitenfeld replaces them as necessary with a
sense of grandiose harmonic astonishment, building from the hopeful
tones of Gregson-Williams' material to several statements of tonal awe
that are not common in the franchise.

The scope of the grand, accessible fantasy portions of
Prometheus is more respectful and restrained than in Brian
Tyler's seemingly intentionally over the top Aliens vs. Predator -
Requiem, endeavoring to achieve a feeling of mystery beyond all
else. This approach clearly directs the themes for the film.
Streitenfeld conjures three recurring themes for his score, the main
identity related to the aspiring character of Gregson-Williams'
mythology theme for the picture. Heard on lonely brass and oboe early in
"A Planet," this primary theme is finally conveyed in full by strings at
1:25 into that cue. The first plaintive lines of this theme are heard
throughout the score in hints, most notably in "Small Beginnings,"
though it does occasionally blossom in its more obvious form again, as
in "Collision." The two secondary themes are also established in "A
Planet" and reprised fully in "Collision." The minor-third rhythmic
phrase for the alien threat, essentially the scary identity of the
score, is introduced at 0:30 and expanded at 2:05 in "A Planet,"
likewise applied frequently as a background device in the score. Its use
in "Going In," "Not Human," and "Birth" makes it, in some ways, the
work's most memorable motif. The most interesting idea in
Prometheus is Streitenfeld's final theme, arguably an interlude
to the main theme that expresses the tragic gravity of the journey in
the film. This noble interlude is expressed best at 1:42 on brass in "A
Planet," massively at 0:16 in "Space Jockey," and twice in "Collision,"
transferring slightly to "Dazed" and other cues requiring a melodramatic
touch. Gregson-Williams' theme seems somewhat redundant, its light
choral majesty guiding similarly conceived cues by Streitenfeld.
Officially credited with writing "Life" and "We Were Right" was
Gregson-Williams, though his comparatively upbeat theme (recalling John
Williams' Krypton opening from Superman in "Life") does venture
into "Earth" and inform other Streitenfeld cues like the appropriately
creepy "Weyland" and "Try Harder." Together, all of these themes form a
surprisingly cohesive core for Prometheus, though don't expect
the identities to really develop throughout the work in a way that will
define a focused narrative. Therein lies the greatest weakness of this
music; instead of building a clearly delineated foundation for perhaps
another franchise of films, it instead relieves listeners because of
what it is not and, in so doing, typically reminds of others' writing.
Outside of the Alien universe, Streitenfeld even recalls the work
of Marco Beltrami, especially with connections to I, Robot in "A
Planet." The mass of sound design for the horror and suspense sequences
is as disappointing as the somewhat limited action material, and a
listener will need to rearrange the album experience to condense the
melodic portions into a solid 15-minute presentation. Overall, it's an
organic and melodramatic surprise, albeit a fragmented one. ***@Amazon.com: CD or
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